


Love Pitch

by Eleonorapoe



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Football, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Bisexual Teddy Lupin, Coach James Sirius Potter, Complete, Emotional Baggage, First Kiss, Fluff and Humor, Football | Soccer, Gay James Sirius Potter, M/M, Meet-Cute, Misunderstandings, POV James Sirius Potter, Past Teddy Lupin/Victoire Weasley, Single Dad Teddy Lupin, Single Parents, making family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-21
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:35:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28216314
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eleonorapoe/pseuds/Eleonorapoe
Summary: The one with James as a kids’ football coach and Teddy as a single dad.Everybody is walking the world with baggage of their own. The real luck is finding the right person to share the weight with. James finds them on the pitch, in the form of divorced Teddy, who is raising his daughter by himself. But to score the goal of his life, James must first learn what this match is really about.
Relationships: Teddy Lupin/James Sirius Potter
Comments: 18
Kudos: 67





	1. Kick-off

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much [BookofSpells](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BookofSpells/pseuds/BookofSpells) and [motherofmercury](https://archiveofourown.org/users/motherofmercury/pseuds/motherofmercury) for all your help and beta of this story! It wouldn´t be readable without you!

“Hello everybody, welcome to the London Bees’ U7 first football lesson!” a cheerful voice roared over a mass of waffling girls from the age of six to seven and their anxious-looking parents. 

“My name is James Potter and I’ll be your coach.” All heads turned to James, and the chatter felt silent. James stood in front of them in a red tracksuit which clashed horribly with his auburn hair and freckled face. A wide smile revealed his perfect teeth and a single dimple formed in his right cheek. He basked in the sudden attention, gazing across the faces of his new players. 

Once, he was just like them, excited to be on the pitch, ready to give his best; but not anymore. He missed that about himself, but he felt closer to the good old days every time two dozen eager eyes looked at him, listening to every word in order to learn to play football and, most importantly, to have fun and make new friends. He loved being a coach!

“Before we begin with today's training,” he continued after a short pause, “please say goodbye to your parents…” Diluted chatter went back to full volume. “Yeah, that's right, wave to your mums. They will pick you up once we’re finished. We don't want them to spoil our fun, right?” he winked to the crowd and the girls all cheered. 

James was watching the parents retreating from the pitch when he noticed a man running towards them. He was waving madly with one hand, his other hand holding on to a little girl flying behind him. 

“I'm sorry, we’re late.” The man, in tight black jeans and a biker’s jacket, squatted in front of James and swung a small pink backpack off his shoulder. “We couldn't find her sneakers,” he added apologetically as he checked the shoes fitted properly on the girl's feet. “This is Mélody.” He nudged the little blonde angel in front of him. 

“Mélody Lupin.” She waved and smiled at the other girls and stuck her hand out towards her new coach. 

James shook her hand and ticked off her name on the attendance list. He flicked his eyes from the clipboard to Mélody's father / brother / babysitter (he wouldn't dare assume). “And you are?” He raised one thick brow.

The man was gorgeous, James had to admit. Tall, with confident posture, amazing cheekbones and the most punk look that had ever been present on the pitch.

“Teddy, Teddy Lupin.” He chuckled nervously and tossed his turquoise undercut out of his eyes. “Mélody's father,” he added and shook James' hand.

Sparks shoot through James' veins.

James pursed his lips and looked down at the blond girl. “Ok, Mélody, unfortunately you came late to training,” he schooled her without even acknowledging Teddy's presence. “I cannot tolerate late arrivals by any of you, which means you have to do one penalty run to the football goal and back, ok?” 

Mélody nodded determinately. 

“Coach, please,” Teddy tried to stop James, “it wasn't really her mistake. I had a busy day and totally forgot where I put her trainers. By the time Mélody found them, we were already running late…” Teddy tried to negotiate but was cut off by James.

“Oh, you’re still here.” James shot him a stern look. “If you insist it was all your fault, then you should be doing the penalty run too, shouldn't you? We want to teach these kids about responsibility, right?” he smirked and turned to the other children. “So, how about you all run with Mr Lupin to cheer for him?” he asked the girls who enthusiastically shouted back and positioned themselves on the touchline.

James waved his hand to start the race and twelve girls ran out to the football goal. Teddy stood next to James, looking utterly confused. James tilted his head to him and said, amused, “If I were you, I’d speed up, because the last one has to clean up the field after the training.”

“You must be kidding, right?” Teddy looked at James in disbelief.

“Nope.” James smiled devilishly and bounced on his heels, looking at the girls, who were midway through their run. He knew he was acting like a git, but he was very determined to disassemble Teddy and make him sweat in any way possible; and given the circumstances, this looked like the only appropriate way.

Teddy took off running towards the goal. He didn't need to put much effort into it. With his long legs, he caught up with the girls in no time. He high-fived the cheering girls as he passed them by.

For a split second, James questioned if it was such a great idea to let Teddy run across the pitch in his heavy leather boots, but the view was definitely worth it.

When he jogged back to James, he asked, panting, “Satisfied, Coach?”

“You could say that.” James patted Teddy on his back patronisingly. “We’ll see you back at four.” He said goodbye to Teddy and turned his attention back to the team. “Ok, football players, who likes penguins?” All the girls shouted and raised their hands. James chuckled. “I thought so, they’re pretty hilarious, aren't they? So, let's play penguins! Each of you takes a ball, place it on the ground between your feet and start walking like a penguin…”

The first practice went well. None of the girls cried when their parents left, which in James' opinion was a great start. Also, it was probably too early to tell, but he could spot some pretty good talent amongst them.

At exactly four p. m., the side bench started to fill with parents coming to pick up their kids from training. 

James noticed Teddy standing away from the crowd, leaning against the wall with a tall Starbucks cup. He hurried the girls off of the pitch and took a stash of fliers which he was supposed to hand out to the parents. He made his way to Teddy when the mother of Bettany crossed his path, holding a baking dish with something hidden underneath a tea towel.

“Coach James,” she addressed him, “we baked shepherd's pie with Bettany yesterday and we made too much of the filling, so we thought we could make one for you, as a thank you for the first training,” she said in a sing-song voice as she lifted up the tea towel. 

The delicious odour of mashed potatoes, ground beef, and seasoned vegetables filled the air. 

“You shouldn't have.” James smiled awkwardly and tried to decline the offer without offending Bettany's mother.

“No, it's really nothing,” she insisted. “After the divorce, I still can't get used to cooking for just the two of us. We constantly have leftovers.” She giggled and winked flirtatiously at James.

James smiled back politely. This was definitely the shortest amount of time before a football mum tried to hit on him. Usually, it took them until the first weekend match. In a desperate attempt at self-preservation, he searched for Teddy. As if Teddy understood his pleading look, he strolled over to them.

“What's that amazing smell, Molly?” he asked and peeked under the tea towel. “Is that your famous shepherd's pie that you were boasting about earlier? I hope, Coach James, you're not planning to eat this goodness by yourself,” he teased, and Molly (that was apparently Bettany mum’s name) blushed like a little girl.

“You are absolutely right, Mr Lupin, it's too much for one. I'm sure Ms Wright will not object if I pass the pie to you.” James smiled at Molly sweetly and it was apparent that she was departing with her pie with a heavy heart. 

James amplified his voice to attract the parents near them. “Oh, don't be disappointed, Ms Wright, we could use your inability to cook for a few at our London Bee’s BBQ,” he told her and turned to the rest of the parents. “Next Saturday at ten, the London Bee football club is hosting the annual welcome party!” he shouted and started passing the fliers with an invitation. “You will meet with kids from other courses, our adult players prepared an exhibition for you, and you are all welcome to participate in a parents contra coaches tournament! Entrance fee is to bring your favourite or family staple dish.” 

Parents thanked him and began to leave. 

“Go nuts, but no peanuts, please,” James added behind them.

Teddy looked over his shoulder, leading Mélody by her hand, and gave him a cheeky smile.


	2. Offside

It seemed that Teddy had learned his lesson after the first training. He and Mélody showed up early on Saturday for the BBQ.

The club staff had been preparing the event since the morning; James included. He was put in charge of buffet tables. He was arranging the dishes when Teddy approached him with a ‘hi’ and a Tupperware container. James noticed that Teddy had switched his all-black attire for a less edgy outfit consisting of a red checked flannel shirt, simple black pants and pair of Vans. He looked very hot and totally out of place amongst the middle-aged pastel-wearing mums and their plainly dressed husbands.

“What do we have here?” James took the glass container from Teddy and opened the lid. “Hmm, pigs in the blankets.” He grabbed one pastry and popped it in his mouth. “You guessed me well, Mr Lupin, I can't say no to a sausage.” He grinned widely.

Teddy almost choked up trying not to burst in laughter. “Teddy's fine,” he said and reached his hand out for James to shake.

James hesitated for a moment. He didn't fully trust himself to touch Teddy's hand again. The issue was that he had never seen a body part more erotic than Teddy's hands. His palms were big enough to cover James' butt cheek and the long slender fingers clothed in several rings would look perfect wrapped around James' shaft, as he had frequently imagined since he saw Teddy for the first time. The slightly raised veins crossing the back of his hands indicated strength, although James had also seen them tenderly braiding Mélody's hair, indicating that these hands could be gentle and caring as well.

He squeezed the offered hand briefly, too afraid that he wouldn't be able to let go.

“By the way, I'm glad you’re a bigger fan of pigs in a blanket than shepherd's pie,” Teddy noted with a wink and James felt sudden heart palpitation. 

Before James could think of anything witty to reply, the other parents came in and placed their homemade dishes on the table and James busied himself with checking the contents.

“Coach James, are you here with the refreshment committee?” Teddy asked doubtfully, witnessing James' odd behaviour.

“Oh, you haven't heard? I have been promoted to a nut detective,” James joked.

“I should thank management of this club for recognising your true potential. Lately, 'Coach James' has been pushing me from the top rank of Mélody's favourite man and I didn't like it at all," Teddy claimed with an exaggerated, puppy-like expression.

“What can I say, I basically have a PhD in _nuts_.” James shrugged, laughing his ass off.

“Oh, I'm sure you do,” Teddy quips with a wink.

James could joke around with Teddy all day but too soon he was cut off by his fellow coach, Abigail. 

“The match is about to start, James, are you coming?” she shouted at them across the pitch. “We are also one player short in the parents’ team!” she waved at Teddy.

“How good are you at football?” James asked. Teddy shook his head and his eyes went wide in utter horror. "That's perfect, last year we lost to the parents' team and we can't afford that humiliation again. You're in!" James exclaimed and dragged a protesting Teddy by his sleeve towards Abigail. 

Teddy wasn't just humble, he was really useless on the pitch. Thanks to his self-destructive performance and James' mastery on the other team, coaches and club management won 15:3 against parents.

“You weren't kidding, you are terrible at this.” James patted Teddy on the back when he was jogging off the pitch. Teddy smiled meekly and followed James to an improvised bar to drown the shame with a cold cider.

“I assume Mélody's talents come from her mother, then?” James teased Teddy when he leaned against the table next to him with a glass of iced tea.

“You might be right.” Teddy nodded. “Victoire, my ex-wife,” he paused and absentmindly twisted the rings on his left ring finger. “She has many talents. Whatever hobby or interest she picked up, she’s been exceptional at it. Unfortunately, she has never stuck with one thing long enough for the world to know about her talent. I hope Mélody didn't get that part from her too.” He smiled softly and looked for his daughter at the craft table. 

“I wouldn't worry, she seems persistent, as far as I can tell after two training sessions,” James assured Teddy.

“Have you always wanted to be a coach? It looks like you were born to do this job,” Teddy asked and turned his focus back to James.

James chuckled. “You could say that after I taught football to all of my eight cousins and two siblings, but no. For the longest time I wanted to play football professionally, like my mum,” he explained and his face grew serious.

“What made you change your mind?” Teddy inquired.

James was taken aback by the question, and he battled with himself over how to respond. Should he give the socially acceptable answer, or the honest one? But he didn't stand a chance of lying when he looked Teddy in his amber eyes.

“I hadn't… At first. I played professionally, but only for one season…” James admitted.

“What happened? Did you get injured?” Teddy assumed.

“No, not really… I don't usually tell this to people, but… I got involved with one teammate… We started dating and… honestly, we were young and foolish. We wanted to do it right, so we went to our coach and the manager. But instead of handling it correctly, they were interested in just burying the affair. They made us choose either to break up or transfer to another club. Ending it didn't seem like an option for us, so my boyfriend pushed me to transfer, but I knew it wouldn't last. Our schedule would be totally different, I would have probably lived in a different city… That wasn't what I wanted. I didn’t want to have a long-distance relationship. That's why I quit after just one season. I hoped we could save what we had, but he turned completely around, forcing me to pretend we were just friends and I couldn't do it. I couldn't lie to my family and friends any longer, so we split up.” James went silent, gazing at his hands folded in his lap.

“You did the right thing, James.” Teddy squeezed his hands reassuringly.

“I'm not sure,” James sighed. “Don't get me wrong, I like coaching kids. They remind me of all the good that is in this sport. But I can't stop thinking about the boys and girls, just like me, who came after. Did I make their life, their career choice, any easier for them?”

Teddy scooped closer to James and forced him to look up. “Hey, you are a good person. I don't know you very well yet, but that much is obvious. You are a great role model to my daughter and you help to shape our kids into responsible, trustworthy and open-hearted people. This is the most important job that all of them can benefit from when they grow up. You did your best, you can't force other people to come forward, can you?”

James sat there in a trance, like Teddy had lifted all the weight off his shoulders. He never had this, never had somebody with whom he could share his fears and insecurities. James was always the strong one, he was so used to keeping his worries to himself, he didn't even notice he was getting out of breath.

He barely managed to readjust his expression into something more suitable for small talk that he was supposed to have with parents at the club's BBQ when Mélody ran to them, exclaiming: “Dad, Coach James, come and look. We made our teams' flag out of glitter!”

She grabbed both of their hands, one from each side and dragged them to the craft table.


	3. Half time

Thursday quickly became James' favourite day of the week. On Thursdays, he was coaching the U7 girls' team, and that meant seeing Teddy. James realised how desperate it was to fixate on his student’s parent. He’d promised himself to never cross this line, never get involved with someone from his job again. He knew things like that could disrupt a team's dynamic. And he couldn't even be sure if Teddy would be interested in him.

They had something going on, but it could be totally platonic from Teddy's side. James didn't have any indication that Teddy was anything but 100% straight.

Better to get over Teddy as soon as possible, James thought. The confusing feelings he was harbouring for Teddy were most likely induced by a lack of his usual bed activities. He hasn't been with anyone since August; since the courses started and he met Teddy. No wonder he had all kinds of funny ideas.

On Friday night he changed from his beloved red tracksuit into black jeans and a plain black t-shirt, he completed the outfit with a floral printed bomber, styled his hair, and headed to his frequent club.

The club was packed more than usual, a local band on the rise was performing tonight that meant more than only regulars were attending. James made his way through the crowd to the bar. He scanned tonight's menu – one or two guys had already caught his attention, but after almost three months of sexual abstinence, he felt off his game. He needed a drink first.

He pressed himself between two men standing at the bar, waved to a bartender and ordered a gin and tonic. The barman didn't acknowledge James' request in any way, but shortly after he pulled a bottle of Bombay Sapphire off the shelf, fixed up the drink and placed it on the bar.

James reached up for the drink through a mass of bodies. He wrapped his fingers around the glass when suddenly he felt someone else grabbing the glass from the other side and pulling it away from him. He leaned over the bar and saw the most erotic hand with long slender fingers covered in various rings holding the glass… James recognised the hand too well! He let go of the glass and straightened himself up to get a better view over the heads crowded around him.

There he was – a man with a turquoise undercut swept to the right side with triple helix piercings in his left ear, drinking James' gin tonic! It couldn't be anyone else but Teddy!

Immediately James threw all of his plans for the night out of the window and pushed towards Teddy.

“Hi, there, I believe you stole my drink.” He tapped Teddy on his back and greeted him.

Teddy's head snapped around and his face lit up as soon as he recognised James. He placed the glass down and hugged James, who had not expected that kind of affection and froze on the spot. As Teddy sensed the shift of energy he let go of him almost instantly and looked guilty. In James' eyes, he was even more adorable.

“One more, please,” Teddy called the bartender and pointed to his drink. “I'm buying,” he announced to James. “I wouldn't dare annoy my daughter's coach by stealing his drink.” He winked and moved to the side to make room for James next to him. 

James still couldn't wrap his head around Teddy's presence in this bar. “I don't want to ask the obvious, but what the hell are you doing here, Teds?” He blurted out and took the drink that appeared in front of him.

“I'm here with the band,” Teddy pointed to the stage. “I signed them for a demo, so they invited me to their concert,” Teddy explained.

Of course, Teddy's presence here was work-related, James thought.

“So, are you a fan?” Teddy asked.

“Uhm, not really, I didn't have a clue that there would be a show tonight, I usually just go here to… you know,” James left the sentence unfinished, nodding his head toward all the men around them.

At that moment it seemed like Teddy just realised what kind of club they were in.

“Oh, you are… looking for a date,” Teddy stuttered.

James crackled with laughter. “That's one way to put it. I usually refer to it as an attempt to get laid,” he chuckled.

“Oh, yes, of course, I haven't been on a date or whatever since me and Victoire divorced, I wouldn't even know how to meet someone,” Teddy admitted and tried to hide his blush behind his glass of gin and tonic.

“Maybe start with taking your wedding ring off,” James suggested cheekily.

“Is it that obvious?” Teddy hummed and started playing with rings on his left ring finger.

James sniggered. “I have trained eyes, you know?” he replied. 

“You’re probably right, I should get back into the dating pool, it's just so damn hard to raise a kid by myself, to be a good dad and run my recording studio at the same time… Most of the time I have just enough energy to brush my teeth and crawl into bed in the evening, I can't imagine putting up with strangers, making small talk...” Teddy complained.

“I believe that's the general idea – to find someone who will help you with the load,” James shrugged.

“What the hell would I know,” Teddy sighed. “I’d been dating Victoire since I was seventeen, we got married so young, we were practically still kids when we had Mélody. And Victoire has never been especially good at sharing responsibilities. She’s a free spirit, always jumping from one wild idea to another. Life with her was exciting, but not particularly compatible with raising a child and being responsible for my own business. She loves us, I'm sure of that, but sometimes she felt suffocated by the steady rhythm of our mundane life. So we did what was best for us and our daughter, we split up. She moved to France to live with her family, it's better this way than to keep each other unhappy,” Teddy smiled but his gaze looked tired and empty. 

James felt a sudden urge to hug him and take all of his baggage on his own shoulders. “Is Mélody missing her mother?” he asked but what he really wanted to know was if Teddy was missing Victoire too.

“It was complicated at first, I won’t lie, but I hope she copes better now. We both do. Mélody spends every summer and the Christmas holidays in France with Victoire and her parents. I think even at seven she’s starting to understand that there are all kinds of families and for us, this is how it works the best,” Teddy tried to explain to James, who listened very carefully.

“She is very bright for her age,” James acknowledged.

Teddy smiled proudly. “She’s the brightest girl of her age!” he exclaimed.

James nodded, amused. “Yeah, definitely! Look at you, for someone who hates small talk you didn't shut up for almost the whole evening!” James poked fun at Teddy, who laughed briefly but soon his facial expression grew more serious.

“It's never just small talk with you, Jamie,” Teddy fixed his eyes on James and it felt like he was looking right into his heart. 

James gulped. 

He couldn't have that happen. He grabbed Teddy by the sleeve and swept him towards the stage.

“Ok, Lupin, we both have a job to do!” James said to break the moment. “Let's go listen to the band!” he shouted over the first guitar riff and as the band took off, he made eye contact with a random bloke standing the closest to them and started dancing with him.


	4. Penalty

Autumn passed, a chilly wind blew across the football pitch and James pulled the collar of his softshell jacket up to the chin to shield himself from the cold. It could be worse; luckily it wasn't raining. 

He was setting up the cones on the field when parents with their kids began to show up for Thursday's U7 training. He spotted Mélody at the gate and waved to her. She furrowed her brows and marched to the bench without replying. Something was off, James had never seen her without a smile on her face. Teddy trailed behind her with a phone by his ear, talking furiously to someone in French. He didn't stop by James to chat before the lesson started, he barely said goodbye to his daughter and left the club still holding the phone to his ear.

Practice went horribly that day. Only two months left until their first match and James doubted if he taught them anything. Mélody, his star striker, pushed Bettany to the ground and Bettany started crying. With both of them sitting on the bench, the rest of the team was running uncoordinatedly across the pitch and Julie – the goalkeeper, got so bored, she built a nest from the grass in the corner of the goal. James was relieved when the practice was over and the parents came to pick the girls up.

Mélody was still sitting grumpily on the bench when Teddy arrived. “Hello, little bee.” He kneeled next to her and put her stuff into the pink backpack. “How was the practice? Did you have a great time playing?” he encouraged her.

“I didn't play at all!” she snapped at her dad. Teddy looked up at James, confused, who was walking slowly towards them.

“Hi, there,” James greeted Teddy. “Mélody, how about you tidy the cones to do something good for the team today?” James challenged her and Mélody trotted away to clean up the pitch after practice.

“What was that about?” Teddy was concerned.

“Can we talk somewhere more private?” James started with a phrase that has never brought anything good in a history of human life. “Let's go to the club room,” he suggested. Teddy mentally braced himself and followed him into a small room reeking of mud and sweat.

“Mélody attacked a teammate today,” James reported to Teddy, “that's the reason I kept her on the bench for this practice.”

Teddy was horrified. 

“Don't worry, nobody got hurt,” James calmed him down. “Mélody will do the extra cleaning work and we’re all good. What I wanted to talk with you about is why it happened.”

“What do you mean?” Teddy raised his pierced eyebrow.

“Look, I don't want to pry or anything, but she came to the training distressed and you were on the phone, discussing something in French…” James was trying to tread carefully around the topic.

“I was talking to Vic,” Teddy admitted.

James didn't move a muscle but deep down, despite his suspicion, he felt betrayed. He knew that you don't quarrel with someone you are done with. But it doesn't matter, he was still just a coach, nothing more. He had to act like one.

“I don't speak French, but it sounded a lot more like an argument. And Mélody isn't stupid. You said it yourself, she is the brightest girl of her age," he reminded Teddy. "If I can tell that you were fighting with your ex-wife over the phone, she can tell it too. Besides, with so much time spent in France, I think she knows a word or two...”

“You’re right, I didn't think it through…” Teddy pulled nervously at the blue checked scarf around his neck. “The thing is, I can't go to France this Christmas. We are making an album with the new band and I managed to book a world-class DJ to mix the tape, but he’s available only in the second half of December. It's a big deal, an amazing opportunity for the band and even for my studio, I can't let it slip away. But I also don't want to deny Mélody her time with her mother and I can't let her fly to France by herself,” he weighed out all of his options.

“I'm sorry, Teddy,” James said in a soothing voice. Once again he felt the need to make everything better for Teddy. If only he knew how.

“It's ok, after some… opinions exchanged,” Teddy looked for the right words, “we have agreed she will come here and spend the holidays with us in London.”

A pang of jealousy clutched James' heart. “That's great, isn't it?” he stuttered with a fake smile to mask his current state of the heart.

“I suppose,” Teddy faltered looking unsure of his decision.

Without noticing it, James moved closer to Teddy, ready to shield him from all the harm of real-life. “What's the problem, Teds?” he asked him.

“I'm afraid everything will go to hell,” Teddy groaned. “Vic hates plans and terms. She’s fun and easygoing, but you can't rely on her for anything. That's why Mélody chose to stay with me, after the divorce, Vic broke her little soul too many times. In France, she has her grandparents who make sure she’s ok…” he said desperately.

“I can keep an eye on her,” James suggested. “You can always call me if you need help.”

Teddy looked up from his scarf. A hint of surprise, doubt and gratitude flickered behind his amber eyes. “Oh, Jamie,” he breathed out and launched at James. “You are the most amazing person,” he mumbled into James' neck while he was hugging him.

James could stay like that forever but he was aware Mélody or anyone else could walk in on them any minute, so he stepped back out of Teddy's arms.

“Sure thing, Mate,” he patted Teddy on the back when he exited the club room.


	5. Goal

It took only the blink of an eye and the last practice before the Christmas break was there. James went an extra mile and prepared a themed obstacle track for his girls, and to lift everybody's spirit (and mostly to mess with Teddy) he wore a reindeer headpiece and a red nose.

When he caught a glow of blond hair in the corner of his eye, he put his red nose on and hurried to the entrance to surprise Mélody and Teddy. But this time instead of Teddy, a beautiful blond woman led Mélody by her hand. All the mums turned their heads to look at her and James stopped in his tracks. He might be gay as hell, but something about this woman took his breath away.

It was the way she moved – with such grace, or how she smiled – warmly but with mischief twinkling in her eyes. 

She came towards James and introduced herself: “Hi, I'm Victoire, Mélody's mother.” She reached out her hand and he wasn't sure if he should shake it or kiss it. He mumbled his own name and quickly retreated back onto the pitch to collect himself before he started the practice.

His mind came lazily back to earth when his pocket started buzzing.

“Hello,” he picked up the unknown number.

“Hi, James, this is Teddy,” a husky voice answered on the other side. James' heart thumped heavily against his ribcage. “I didn't mean to bother you, I just wanted to make sure Vic dropped off Mélody to the practice,” Teddy asked.

James was surprised to hear Teddy. “Y...yes, she did,” he stumbled over his words.

Teddy breathed out relieved. “Oh, that's great, sorry for being paranoid,” he apologized. 

“Hey, that's ok, no worries,” James was assuring him. “I promised I would keep an eye on your daughter. She’s getting ready with other girls and your ex-wife…” James’ eyes wandered to the side bench, “she seems more than ok, like a queen bee in a hive,” he commented on how Victoire was standing, tall and radiant, in the centre of the other mums who were competing for her attention, hoping to get their mediocre existence into the spotlight, even if for just a moment.

Teddy snickered. “Yeah, she has that effect on some people.”

The other line went silent.

“I should probably go...coaching,” James said hesitantly.

“Sorry.” Teddy collected himself. “It was nice to hear your voice…ehm...talk to you, I meant…” he faltered, unable to take back what he said.

James chuckled. “I enjoyed talking to you too,” he replied and hung up. It was about time to get the mums off the pitch and their children onto it.

After that fiasco a couple of weeks back, James was pleasantly surprised by how well the girls worked together on the field. He began hoping they had an actual chance to win the league! After the practice, he made the rounds of all the parents, wished them happy holidays and thanked their kids for their hard work.

Mélody was the last one, sitting on the bench alone.

“Is your mum supposed to pick you up?” James asked her and Mélody nodded, isolated from the outside world in a thick knitted scarf. “Do you know her phone number?” he wondered, and this time Mélody shook her head vehemently. James stood up, offered Mélody his right hand and took her pink backpack in the left. “I bet she’s just a little late, we can go meet her at the front entrance, ok?” he suggested and Mélody happily accepted.

In front of the main gate, there were still a couple of mums chatting but no sight of Victoire.

James approached them and asked if they knew where Mélody's mother had headed after she dropped her daughter off. 

They looked startled at first, staring at him with raised brows, eyes flicking from him to Mélody and back like they were having trouble remembering who he was looking for.

“I think she wanted to pick up some cake for dinner or something,” Molly replied after some thinking.

“Right, she mentioned a blueberry cake, it's a speciality at that hipster bakery down the road,” the other mum filled in.

Molly looked at her watch. “But she should be back already, don't you think…” the sentence died on her lips when James stopped her with a stern look.

He thanked Molly and turned to Mélody. “Mum’s probably waiting in the line to get you the cake,” he assured her. “We’ll call your dad ok?” he said and pulled out his phone.

Teddy picked it up right away. “Hi, James, is something wrong?” he sounded concerned.

“No, no, Mélody is fine,” James calmed him down. “Victoire just didn't show up. The other mums said she went to the bakery, but it’s not far away...Has she told you that she will be late?” he asked.

Teddy sighed heavily. “No, I’m sure she’s okay, she posted a pic on her Insta a moment ago in a cooking hat…” he told James, very clearly irritated about his ex-wife's latest shenanigans. “I will wrap up and be there in forty minutes, could you please wait there with Mélody?” he asked James in a much more gentle tone.

James got an idea. “Are you working? How about I drop her off at your studio, then,” he offered. “What’s the address?” 

“I don't want to trouble you…” Teddy protested.

But James insisted. “It’s really no big deal,” he assured Teddy.

“Okay, it’s in Soho, Portland Mews twelve,” Teddy dictated James the address. “And thank you, James, I appreciate it,” he added.

James loaded Mélody into his car, and with a quick stop to a drive-through to buy her fries, they headed to Soho.

The building looked ordinary with one row of listed properties next to the doorbells. 

‘Mélody Makers’ 3rd floor, James read to himself and snorted.

He rang the bell and the door opened with a buzz.

Mélody led the way confidently to the third floor.

“Hello, darling,” a middle-aged woman greeted her behind the lobby counter. “Have you come to see your dad?” she asked sweetly and Mélody nodded. “He’s in the recording room, she'll show you the way,” the woman said to James and Mélody shot forward immediately. 

James didn't get the chance to properly introduce himself, he ran off after Mélody to catch her, but he was too slow. She busted through the door at the end of the hallway and James stumbled inside right behind her.

“Dad!” she squeaked and jumped into Teddy’s arms.

“Hi, my little bee,” Teddy kissed her on the top of her head and put her back on the ground. “Are you hungry?” he asked and she shook her head.

“I bought her fries on the way here,” James admitted. “I’m sorry, I should have asked first…” he apologised.

Teddy waved his hand. “Don't worry, fries once isn't the end of the world,” he laughed it off and directed Mélody to the adjacent room, behind a glass wall, which was equipped with numerous instruments, microphones, headsets, barstools and an enormous armchair. 

“How about you play us a little beat before I finish and then we can go home, okay?” he suggested to Mélody who didn't waste a second before hitting the drums with total chaotic abandon.

Teddy closed the door behind her and adjusted some knobs on the big black panel in front of him to minimise the noise from behind the glass wall.

James finally had time to look around. The band was obviously gone, but a woman was sitting there, behind the mixing panel, reminding him of an old Woodstock attendant, eyeing him suspiciously.

“This is Moana, our production manager, Moana, James, Mélody’s coach,” Teddy introduced them.

Moana raised herself from her seat. “ _The_ James!” she exclaimed excitedly. “Nice to finally meet you,” she hugged a shocked James in a motherly way. James wrapped his arms around her tiny frame awkwardly as she gave him one last squeeze and pulled away. “I’m so happy for you two,” she said with a little gleam in her eyes and left the startled James alone with Teddy.

“That was weird,” James muttered under his breath and pushed his weight from one foot to the other, not knowing how to act alone around Teddy.

“Don't mind her,” Teddy dismissed his worries. “She used to be my music teacher when I was a kid and after my parents died, she practically raised me, that's why she’s so invested in my life,” he grumbled.

James was taken aback by this new information. He couldn't imagine growing up without his parents and their big crazy family. “I'm so sorry, I didn't know that,” he said softly and pushed his weight back to the other foot.

“It's fine, it happened a long long time ago,” Teddy shrugged it off.

James glanced at him, Teddy, who was always smiling and welcoming, looked unexpectedly distant and alone. James took two steps towards him and brushed his fingers against Teddy's shoulder. Teddy looked up at him, smiled tenderly and squeezed James' hand like he needed this small gesture of caring. 

Suddenly Teddy broke their touch and stood up. “I'm a terrible host, I didn't offer you anything!” he walked to the small kitchen counter located in the corner of the room. “Do you want some tea?” he offered, and turned on the electric kettle.

“I should be going home…” James bobbed his head towards the door.

“Nonsense!” Teddy proclaimed. “I haven't thanked you yet and I can't think of a better way than serving you tea like a true Englishman,” he poured three cups, two of them he set down on the coffee table in the a lounge area, and the third one he carried to Mélody in the adjacent part of the recording room.

When Teddy opened the door, James noticed she was no longer playing the drums. The room was completely silent and Mélody was cuddled up in the armchair, her hand loosely wrapped around the drum sticks. Teddy put the cup on the floor, took the drum sticks out of her hand and wrapped a blanket around her. Then he stepped out and closed the door behind them.

Both of them took the cups off the table and sat down on the couch. 

“She passed out pretty quickly,” James noted, smiling.

“Yeah, she always comes from the practice overhyped and gets tired almost immediately,” Teddy agreed and sipped from the cup. “James, I can't thank you enough for what you have done for us today, for all your trouble…”

“Please, don’t,” James stopped Teddy. “I'm not some knight in shining armour.”

“I know, you’re _James_ ,” Teddy said as if the acknowledgement scared him.

James bumped their shoulders to ease the heaviness of the atmosphere and Teddy’s vulnerability. “ _The_ James?” he teased.

Teddy looked him directly into his eyes and James felt how his cocky posture was crumbling under the amber gaze.

“ _Our_ James,” Teddy breathed out with a tender smile on his lips.

James was mesmerised by his lips. He had to put in all of his will power to tear his eyes away and better to focus on a cup in his hands.

The silence stretched.

James' mind evaded a nagging question. He swallowed hard, debating in his head if he wanted to know the answer. 

“I need to ask you something, Teds,” he found the courage eventually. “Why does your production manager...Moana, why did she think we’re together?”

The impact of that question was instant. Teddy's eyes went wide, his brows rose up and a blush crept into his cheeks. He coughed nervously and put the cup aside.

“She’s an old hippie lady, you can't take her seriously about stuff like that; in her youth, everybody slept with everybody,” Teddy tried to convince James.

But more than the words, it was Teddy's odd behaviour that suggested to James that it wasn't entirely true.

“Sure, sure, but people usually don’t assume that two buddies are a couple if there is no reason for that…” James didn’t let Teddy off the hook that easily.

“Ok, maybe there is a reason…” Teddy admitted hesitantly and scooted closer to James.

James was playing with fire and he could smell the burning. It smelled like bacon and he craved it.

He reached forward to set the cup on the table and met Teddy's eyes glued to him and so dangerously close. Once again he felt powerless to what was about to happen. He was drawn to the other man by the force of the whole universe. He tilted his head and Teddy mirrored his little movement. A hot breath ghosted his lips, he parted them and Teddy closed the gap between them.

James felt the thrill tingling in the tips of his fingers. He grabbed Teddy by his hips and pulled him closer. Their knees bumped against each other, Teddy cupped James's face and pressed their lips together. 

James' mind went blank, all he could focus on was to taste more. He licked inside Teddy's hot mouth, teasing Teddy's tongue and scraping his upper lip with his teeth. Teddy moaned softly and the sound went right into James' crotch.

At that moment his consciousness reappeared from a fog of excitement and he became aware of what he was doing and where it was leading. He couldn't do it. Not to himself, not to Mélody. She trusted him. 

“Wait, stop,” he pushed Teddy away. “We can't, this isn’t right…” he was panting and trying to get out of Teddy's reach. “What about Mélody, I'm her coach…” he stood up abruptly and checked if she was still sleeping.

Teddy looked stunned but he gathered his bearings quickly. “Right, you’re right,” he pushed his messed-up hair out of his face. “We need to do this right. Let's go out for a date first. Right after New Year’s, ok?” he suggested confidently.

James’ heart tightened. “I'm sorry, but it's a bad idea. I'll still be Mélody's coach and I can't get involved with one of the parents. I would lose all of my credibility with the team and with the other parents,” he was trying to explain himself.

Teddy looked hurt, he slouched his back and stared blankly in front of him. He didn't understand why James was turning him down. “I thought that you wanted it, too,” he objected.

James felt trapped. Of course he wanted this more than anything. His heart was longing to make Teddy happy, but his mind fabricated all these reasons why he should stay away. “I'm sorry,” he breathed out. “I didn't mean to mislead you. But we don’t always get what we want,” James whispered on his way out, heart heavy.


	6. Hat trick

James had never dreaded anything as much as that first Thursday of January. It was his U7 team first practice after the Christmas break. After he fucked it up royally. Or maybe he didn't. He wasn't sure about anything anymore. He only knew that those two weeks of Christmas break he was nothing but miserable. And that meeting Teddy with Mélody again wouldn't make him feel any better. Quite the opposite.

But when he saw them, strolling alongside the pitch to the side bench, his heart skipped joyfully and he started walking towards them without even thinking.

Halfway, he realised that Teddy probably didn't want to talk to him (and for good reason) but it was already too late. They were standing face to face, surrounded by sugar-hyped kids with nowhere to escape.

“Hi,” James chirped awkwardly. 

Teddy said hi politely back but nothing more. They were standing there like two idiots, staring into each other’s eyes. And they would’ve stood there forever if Mélody hadn’t pulled Teddy's arm down to whisper something into his ear. 

It was pretty out of character for her, she usually wasn't shy at all; talking in front of anybody, especially James.

Teddy was crouching over to let Mélody reach his ear and James watched him as a smile spread over his face.

“Ok, ok, I will tell him,” Teddy hissed to Mélody. He rose up and said to James: “We got you a present for Christmas.”

James tilted his head as if he couldn’t believe what he heard.

Mélody smiled brightly, pulled out a tiny package in Christmas wrapping from Teddy's pocket and handed it to perplexed James. "Dad bought it but I did the decorating," she announced proudly.

James tore the paper and a whistle fell out. Its yellow and black rhinestones, glued in a pattern loosely resembling stripes, shined even through afternoon fog that was settling around them.

“It's a bee whistle! Do you like it?” Mélody asked eagerly and hopped up and down around them. 

Teddy rolled his eyes slightly, only for James to see. 'I'm sorry for that' he mouthed towards James with a shrug.

“I love it! Thank you very much!” James replied and blew the whistle to test it out. Everybody went silent immediately and all eyes turned to him. “It's handy,” he remarked with a smirk. “Time to start today's practice!” he called out. Girls assembled at the home penalty area and parents made their way slowly to the exit. 

Before he could properly thank Teddy, he was gone.

Bit by bit, things began to settle down. Every encounter with Teddy was less painful and less awkward than the last one, and when spring made its way through the muddy London winter, Thursdays became James' favourite days again.

They found their little routine. Teddy came with Mélody to the practice, he teased James (mostly by his good looks and delicate fingers when he was tying Mélody's shoelaces, expertly); James poked fun at Teddy, then did his best to prepare the girls for their first match; Teddy came to pick up Mélody; they chatted a little; Teddy and Mélody left; James felt a hole in his heart.

All was well.

The first match of the season was a big event for all the girls and their parents. And for James as well. He was bouncing around the pitch from the expectation of how his team would perform.

“Nervous much?” Teddy approached him with Mélody in his tracks.

James squeezed out an anxious laugh. 

Teddy wrapped his arms around James. “Good luck,” he wished him and took his seat on the tribune.

James' heart melted. 

He was ready. He gave the girls last minute instructions and started the match by blowing his sparkly whistle.

Little league matches weren't usually the most thrilling ones. Children ran on the pitch back and forth wherever the ball was currently rolling, occasionally someone shot in a vague direction of the goal.

There were only a few moments like this, potent with expectation.

Mélody took the ball from the opposite team, she ran with it straight to the goal, the opponent defender crossed her path but she didn't hesitate and bypassed her by a perfectly executed scissor move. Parents cheered, James shouted at her to aim. She swung her leg and kicked the ball with everything she had. Parents stood up from their seats and James stopped breathing ready to whistle their first goal.

The ball flew to the goal but instead of dropping into its net, it bounced from the crossbar and fired back to where Mélody was standing, hitting her in the face and knocking her over.

James dropped the whistle and ran towards Mélody. She was lying on the ground, bleeding from her forehead, blinking rapidly at the sky. He steadied her head and checked her breathing. “Hey, do you remember what happened?” he asked her to assess the severity of the injury.

“I don't...The ball...hit me,” she stuttered out.

Everyone who was already on the pitch crowded around her and more people rushed up from the stands. 

Teddy pushed through the crowd with a phone on his ear, talking to the ambulance. He knelt down to Mélody, tossed the phone with paramedics on the line to James and took Mélody's hand.

“What should I do?” he asked James, but not taking his eyes from Mélody.

“Make her stay awake," James instructed Teddy while he was on the call with the emergency. "She'll be alright, we'll get her to check in the hospital, but she'll be okay," James murmured to Teddy to calm him down.

The ambulance arrived promptly, paramedics loaded Mélody, Teddy jumped in right behind them, the door closed and the ambulance took off with flashing light and a sound of a siren.

James walked absentmindedly to the place where he lost his whistle. It was sparkling in the grass so he picked it up and put it back around his neck. He was numb. In the corner of his eye he could see the commotion on the pitch; parents taking their children off and leaving. But he wasn't really noticing any of it. His mind was narrowed only to Mélody and Teddy, how desperately he needed to be with them, hold their hands; make sure Mélody was fine.

A warm touch on his arm ripped James out of his thoughts. “Coach James, what are you doing here?” Molly asked him with a concerned look.

“I was…” James faltered, not knowing what to reply.

“Why didn't you go with them?” Molly wondered. “Do you need somebody to drive you to the hospital?” 

“What? What are you talking about?” James didn't understand.

“Look at you, you’re sulking on the pitch instead of being with your boyfriend and his daughter, giving them moral support, taking care of them,” she was fretting.

James shook his hands violently in a defensive gesture. “No, no, no, we aren't anything more than friends,” he tried to explain to Molly.

“ _Oh_ ,” Molly breathed out. “Really?” She perched one eyebrow up. “We all thought you two were a couple. You seemed to work very well together…”

James was struck by this idea. “You thought that? And you were okay with it?” He couldn't believe it. Maybe he had worried and hurt Teddy for nothing.

“Of course, why wouldn't we be?” Molly shook her head. “Did you think that football mums are a bunch of bigoted harpies?” she laughed out loud. “Coach, for once stop thinking about others and do what you think is right!”

James realized she was right! He deserved to be happy and Teddy deserved it too. “I have to go, thank you so much!” He squeezed Molly's hand and ran to the parking lot.

“Go get them, Coach!” Molly cheered behind him.

James arrived at the hospital and headed to the emergency room located on the ground floor. He spotted Teddy right away, pacing restlessly back and forth on the hallway like a lion in a cage. Every time Teddy passed by the infirmary, he paused and stared at the door. James' heart fluttered. Seeing Teddy, he knew he had made the right decision. He ran towards him and tackled him into a hug.

“Uh, wow,” Teddy exhaled when James knocked his breath out. “What are you doing here, Jamie?”

“I'm so sorry, I was scared to lose what I had, but I realized that losing you two, even if I never had you, is scarier,” James mumbled into the crook of Teddy’s neck.

Teddy unwrapped himself from James and looked at him full of hope but also a little bit hesitant. “What are you blabbering on about.” He eyed him suspiciously.

“I want you, I want to be with you, I want to be part of your family, if you’ll let me,” James clarified and it felt so good to say out loud what his heart has desired since he met Teddy.

“Oh, Jamie.” Teddy breathed out, cupped James' face and kissed him.

James surrendered to Teddy’s touch, he pressed his body to Teddy, collapsed into his arms and kissed him with all that built up passion and longing.

Teddy chuckled into the kiss. “Whoa, we should probably leave the rest for when we’ll have more privacy,” he broke off the kiss but stayed close to James.

Someone coughed behind them and they both jumped aside. 

“Sorry to interrupt, Mr Lupin, we’re done here,” a nurse announced, bobbing her head out of the infirmary.

“Are you coming?” Teddy asked James as he stood in the door frame.

James entered the room behind Teddy, Mélody was sitting on the deck chair with a patch across her eyebrow.

“I got three stitches!” she exclaimed proudly and wrapped her arms around Teddy’s waist. 

Teddy pulled her into a hug and kissed her on top of her head. When he let her go he turned to James. “She kicked me out before,” he told him, “for squeezing her hand too hard.” His eyes went soft when he looked at his daughter. “She was very brave and didn't cry at all.” He smoothed down a few loose strands of hair from her braid.

Mélody grinned proudly. “Did we win, Coach?” she turned to James who was standing awkwardly in the doorway.

“No, the match was called off,” he replied. “And you can call me James when we’re outside of the pitch,” he suggested, looking to Teddy for approval.

Teddy smiled softly. “Let's go home now, it's been a long day.” He took both of them by one hand each and led them out of the hospital.

“I'm so happy that there are three of us now,” Mélody beamed.

“Me too,” Teddy agreed and pulled James closer.

“Me three,” James whispered and leaned his head against Teddy's shoulder. He felt truly lucky to become a part of this family, to have not only one person, but two people with whom he could share his life. The three of them made a team and he was determined to keep winning this match of his life.


End file.
